“Public reefs typically would produce anywhere from 3 million to 7 million pounds of oyster meat a year. In 2010 and 2011, production dropped to barely 2 million pounds, then nosedived to just 563,100 pounds in 2012 before rising to 954,950 pounds last year.

The other Gulf States aren’t exempt from the oyster decline either. The cause of their decline is most likely due to a combination of factors cited in the media, such as hurricanes, drought, a booming coastal population, floods, and the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster of 2010.

Mississippi and Alabama have also reported on the decreased oyster population and the boom in their prices at restaurants. Chris Nelson is the vice president of Bon Secour Fisheries Inc. in Alabama, and he recently told the San Antonio Express News that:

“The impact of all these different problems, challenges along the Gulf Coast, have led to an historical low point in the production of oysters.”

The efforts to keep up with demand for oysters poses a potential threat to the resource as well because harvesters may be tempted to take juvenile oysters that still need time to grow and provide important functions in our bays and estuaries.

Regarding the concern over decreasing oyster populations in Texas, Bryan Legare of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department also reported to the San Antonio Express News:

“Drought plus a growing population equals no water entering the bays. The reservoirs aren’t releasing as much water as they need to for environmental concerns.”

A single oyster can filter up to 50 gallons of water per day. Photo from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

While the exact cause or causes of the current oyster situation may vary from state to state, the need to restore and protect their presence across the Gulf of Mexico does not. That’s because oysters do essential jobs while calling the Gulf coast home – they filter a tremendous amount of water that flows through our bays and estuaries, and they protect people and infrastructure from storm events by making our shores stronger.

Right now, all five Gulf Coast States are planning how they will spend billions of dollars of Deepwater Horizon oil spill recovery money. This is money allocated to Gulf States from the RESTORE Act, to be spent on restoration of the Gulf’s coastal region and marine environment.

Spending oil spill recovery money on projects and programs that will either restore or enhance Gulf oysters, like projects aimed at protecting our bays and estuaries, will not only benefit the health of the Gulf ecosystem, but will sustain our economy as well.

The National Wildlife Federation is working to restore the Gulf of Mexico for people and wildlife from Florida to Texas, and we need your help to continue our efforts. Please consider making a donation today!

]]>http://blog.nwf.org/2014/08/gulf-coast-oysters-in-peril/feed/0Speak Up! BP Oil Spill Fines Must be Used to Restore the Gulfhttp://blog.nwf.org/2013/05/speak-up-bp-oil-spill-fines-must-be-used-to-restore-the-gulf/
http://blog.nwf.org/2013/05/speak-up-bp-oil-spill-fines-must-be-used-to-restore-the-gulf/#commentsFri, 31 May 2013 15:36:40 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/?p=80821Read more >]]>Three years after the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded and sent more than 200 million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico, the region’s wildlife and wetlands are still suffering.

The Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council released a draft plan for restoring the Gulf in the wake of the BP oil disaster. While there is much to like in the recent draft, the Restoration Council is also under enormous outside pressure to approve development projects that in some cases can actually cause further harm.

Speak Up and Submit Comments!

Now is the public’s opportunity to have its voice heard and let the Council know that we want BP’s oil spill fines to be used solely on projects that help restore the Gulf.There is a formal public comment period for the Draft Plan that ends July 8, 2013. Simply click here and submit a comment to the Council.

We appreciate that the Ecosystem Restoration Council’s Draft Initial Plan further elaborates on the requirements of the RESTORE Act that the Council-selected Restoration Allocation (30%) will be dedicated solely to ecosystem restoration projects.The Council should maintain an environmental restoration focus.

The Impact-Based State allocations, 30% of the RESTORE Act dollars, should not fund projects that will do harm to the environment. The Final Plan should require that provides a net environmental gain.

The Draft Plan indicates the Council will seek further public comment on a project list. The Final Plan must ensure that the public is granted the opportunity to comment and participate in all phases of plan and project development. It’s important for stakeholders to provide input on the projects that will inevitably affect people in the Gulf and throughout the nation.

]]>http://blog.nwf.org/2013/05/speak-up-bp-oil-spill-fines-must-be-used-to-restore-the-gulf/feed/0Memo to BP: End the Blame Game, Restore the Gulfhttp://blog.nwf.org/2013/03/memo-to-bp-end-the-blame-game-restore-the-gulf/
http://blog.nwf.org/2013/03/memo-to-bp-end-the-blame-game-restore-the-gulf/#commentsMon, 18 Mar 2013 20:20:18 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/?p=76679Read more >]]>It took BP 87 days to cap the well gushing from a mile beneath the surface of the Gulf of Mexico, in an area known as the Macondo prospect. For months, BP shirked responsibility, hiding the flow-rate from government officials, shareholders and the American people.

Gulf residents on the first day of trial, asking the Department of Justice to hold BP fully accountable.

It has taken plaintiffs’ lawyers representing federal, state, and private interests just three weeks to present evidence that BP’s actions constitute gross negligence. They rested their case today. Almost immediately, BP again denied responsibility — this time, to the Court.

BP asked District Judge Carl Barbier to rule that there wasn’t evidence of gross negligence. Rather than delay justice for the Gulf, Barbier was clear: “Frankly, I’m not going to grant that motion,” Barbier said. “I don’t see any point in arguing it.”

In the elaborate dance of this multi-party, multi-claim, multi-district trial for the largest environmental disaster in U.S. history, Transocean will present its case next. Transocean will likely argue the disaster was caused by the gross negligence of BP, or that the disaster was an accident.

As the oil companies point fingers, the impacts of the disaster on Gulf wildlife linger. Recent data suggests oil mixed with sediments in a dirty “blizzard” before settling on the sea floor, potentially causing “significant damage to ecosystems” and future harm to commercial fisheries. For the sake of the Gulf, it’s time for the blame game to end and for restoration to begin.

]]>http://blog.nwf.org/2013/03/memo-to-bp-end-the-blame-game-restore-the-gulf/feed/2For Gulf Restoration, Every Dollar Countshttp://blog.nwf.org/2013/03/for-gulf-restoration-every-dollar-counts/
http://blog.nwf.org/2013/03/for-gulf-restoration-every-dollar-counts/#commentsThu, 07 Mar 2013 15:58:35 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/?p=75796Read more >]]>This weekend I had the opportunity to discuss what BP might face at trial for the Gulf oil disaster with some eloquent thought leaders, including Tulane political science professor and MSNBC host Melissa Harris-Perry. We discussed the continuing “unusual mortality event” of Gulf dolphins, the 565,000 pounds of Deepwater Horizon oil that washed ashore only six months ago with Hurricane Isaac, and other continuing impacts of the disaster.

It’s difficult to quantify the harm in an environmental disaster. The Gulf is enormous and oil gushed from over a mile below the surface of the ocean. Because water and wildlife move, it would be near-impossible to find every bit of damage. Researchers found evidence of Deepwater Horizon oil in pelican eggs in Minnesota last year! To compound matters, the impacts are far-reaching into parts of the ecosystem that scientists don’t know much about. For instance, a substantial amount of the oil moved southwest of the Macondo well and settled into a deep underwater canyon.

BP’s 2012 annual report indicates that Chief Executive Bob Dudley, who spoke at the CERAWeek Energy Industry conference yesterday about just about everything but trial, made $2.67 million last year. In the three years since the spill, BP has netted close to $40 billion, even after covering the cost to cap the well, run ubiquitous “our beaches are open” commercials, pay individual claims and pay the largest corporate criminal penalty by the Department of Justice.

The law that governs oil spills is clear: since profits from offshore drilling are so high and the consequences are so dangerous, unsafe drillers who spill must compensate for all damage and face penalties. This helps discourage putting profits over safety.

Unbelievably, on the day of our panel, the Washington Post ran an editorial arguing that BP should not face severe penalties.The editorial posed the question, “How much is too much for BP?” In what must be a tagline meant for an April Fool’s Day piece, the editorial continued, “A bill anywhere near that large is impossible to justify.” This is precisely why polluters engage in willful blindness to legal requirements: environmental laws are viewed as somehow less legitimate than tax evasion, racketeering, or labor laws. But crime is crime.

Testimony from the trial shows that this multi-billion dollar corporation had an “every dollar counts” mentality that led them to take egregious safety risks to cut costs, resulting in the loss of eleven lives and over 172 million gallons of crude oil spilled in one of the most productive ecosystems in the world. Misplaced sympathy for BP’s liability is akin to taking pity on Ponzi schemers facing punitive damages for their crimes. BP made calculated business decisions to take dangerous shortcuts in search of profit. The only way to prevent such behavior in the future is to balance the scales of justice so that the reward no longer justifies the risk.

]]>http://blog.nwf.org/2013/03/for-gulf-restoration-every-dollar-counts/feed/3Gulf Residents Ask DOJ to Hold BP Fully Accountablehttp://blog.nwf.org/2013/02/gulf-residents-ask-doj-to-hold-bp-fully-accountable/
http://blog.nwf.org/2013/02/gulf-residents-ask-doj-to-hold-bp-fully-accountable/#commentsMon, 25 Feb 2013 23:47:11 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/?p=75287Read more >]]>Today marked the start of the civil trial to hold BP accountable for the 2010 oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. As dawn broke in New Orleans, 50 Gulf coast residents and representatives from National Wildlife Federation, Environmental Defense Fund, National Audubon Society, Levees.org, Gulf Restoration Network, Sierra Club, and university students came to the Hale Boggs Federal Courthouse to demonstrate that they, like the rest of the nation, expect BP to pay for the destruction in the Gulf of Mexico.

BP Trial – Tens of Billions at Stake

Some people may be asking, “Hasn’t BP paid for the damage?” and the simple answer is “No.” BP did pay a record-breaking $4.5 billion penalty in the criminal portion of the case, but BP still faces tens of billions in civil penalties for reckless violations of the Clean Water Act and the Oil Pollution Act.

One of the main issues at hand is whether or not BP is guilty of “gross negligence.” With everything the public knows about the failed tests, the intentional misrepresentations about the size of the spill, and BP’s abysmal safety record, NWF’s legal experts believe the case should be a clear-cut case of gross negligence.

However, media reports indicate that the Department of Justice may have offered BP a lower-than-expected settlement. Larry Schweiger, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation commented, “A potential settlement as low as the reported $16 billion would not be much of a deterrent for an oil giant like BP—and it is unlikely to be enough to fully restore the Gulf of Mexico as the law requires. The Obama Administration can and must do more to hold BP accountable.”

Speak Up for the Gulf!

You can follow all the BP trial proceedings on the Mississippi River Delta Coalition’s Twitter and Facebook.

]]>http://blog.nwf.org/2013/02/gulf-residents-ask-doj-to-hold-bp-fully-accountable/feed/01,000 Days Late and Billions of Dollars Shorthttp://blog.nwf.org/2013/01/1000-days-late-and-billions-of-dollars-short/
http://blog.nwf.org/2013/01/1000-days-late-and-billions-of-dollars-short/#commentsMon, 14 Jan 2013 16:00:07 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/?p=72941Read more >]]>Tomorrow marks one thousand days since the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded, spewing millions of barrels of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico over 87 days. The oil spill devastated the Gulf’s economy, ecosystems, and wildlife all of which is still reeling from the catastrophe. So after one thousand days, I have to ask:has British Petroleum (BP) been held fully accountable for the disaster in the Gulf?

A photo of a struggling pelican coated with oil floating in the Gulf of Mexico now greets workers arriving at the Navy Archives Metro station, close to the Department of Justice’s Pennsylvania Avenue headquarters building.

Well, BP recently agreed to pay $4.5 billion in criminal fines and penalties – the largest ever criminal resolution in the United States. And in May 2012 BP agreed to pay up to $7.8 billion to private plaintiffs. But BP still faces upwards of $21 billion in civil Clean Water Act penalties. Furthermore, if BP paid the same per-gallon fines as Exxon did for the Valdez spill, its liability under the Oil Pollution Act would be in the range of $30 billion. That’s a total of up to $50 billion in civil fines and penalties.

We must hold BP accountable for their actions

For a corporation like BP – that has a net worth of about $81 billion and has reported earnings of $5.2 billion for the third quarter of 2012 (a 40% rise in earnings) – the statutory fines it faces for gross violations of the Clean Water Act are (please forgive the horrible pun) a drop in the bucket. It’s despicable that while BP just paid the largest criminal penalties in U.S. history, the amount was still about one billion dollars less than they earned last quarter alone!

What do teachers do to keep kids from repeatedly breaking class rules? They enforce the rules to the letter of the law. So what will adequately prevent corporations like BP from taking reckless shortcuts that harm the environment and ensure there is sufficient capital for environmental restoration?

Suuurvey says: make them pay! The responsible party must compensate the damaged interests (the Gulf resources and communities that were polluted). A robust settlement will deter future misconduct and simultaneously provide the critical investment necessary to repair and rebuild the Gulf.

]]>http://blog.nwf.org/2013/01/1000-days-late-and-billions-of-dollars-short/feed/0Wildlife Victory! Congress Says BP Fines Must Help Restore Gulfhttp://blog.nwf.org/2012/06/restore-act-passes/
http://blog.nwf.org/2012/06/restore-act-passes/#commentsFri, 29 Jun 2012 20:45:12 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/?p=62585Read more >]]>Thanks to the persistent voices of hundreds of thousands of wildlife advocates, Congress passed a Transportation Package that includes the potential for the largest investment in wildlife conservation in U.S. history and two very important wins for wildlife against Big Oil.

Why was this bill so important? Under the Clean Water Act, BP could face as much as $20 billion in fines for its responsibility in the oil disaster.

“Once BP’s fines and penalties have been established, the RESTORE Act will represent one of the most important investments in natural resources in America’s history, a critically-needed commitment to Gulf Coast ecosystems and the people who depend on them,” said Larry Schweiger, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation. “All of us now have the responsibility to make sure every dollar is invested in restoring the Gulf’s impacted communities and wildlife habitat.”

National Wildlife Federation and our members and supporters have been fighting for two years to make sure the Gulf gets the help it deserves. Thank you so much to everyone who helped make this a reality!

Keystone XL Provision Rejected

The icing on the cake is that the legislation passed today does NOT include language that would have forced approval of the Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline. This was a very real threat and would have put endangered whooping cranes and swift foxes at risk of toxic oil spills, while also driving a rapid expansion of habitat-destroying tar sands operations that could put the lives of thousands of Canada’s wolves and caribou at risk.

This tremendous victory for wildlife is a testament to how Americans can hold our elected officials accountable to protecting America’s wildlife.

BP again puts workers at risk as fire explodes at Washington’s largest oil refinery.

As we near the two year anniversary of BP’s Deepwater Horizon explosion, the worst environmental disaster in our nation’s history, one has to wonder if BP has learned a thing from that incident. Our Federal Government has yet to fully hold BP accountable as Gulf state residents desperately try to get a vote on the RESTORE Act which would dedicate the BP oil spill penalties to restore the Gulf Coast communities, environment and economy—where the damage from the BP oil spill was done—rather than simply being deposited into the Federal Treasury. After eleven workers lost their lives in the Deepwater incident BP made lofty promises to implement even more stringent safety requirements than mandated by federal regulations to prevent future disasters. After almost two years without accountability, yet another explosion at BP’s Cherry Point refinery in Washington State prove these promises ring hollow.

As fire crews continue their attempt to fully contain the fire from the explosion at BP’s Cherry Point refinery, comments from BP spokesman Scott Dean indicate where Big Oil’s priorities lie.

“The refinery continues to produce products for customers, and it is too soon to speculate on future supply impacts.”

With over 100 workers evacuated watching the fireball from the parking lot, amazingly BP did not even halt the refining process.

Local news station King5 photo.

With 65% of the refinery’s crude oil a day coming from Alaska as well as 20% of their crude mostly coming from Canadian tar sands- halting production would have meant a loss of over 225,000 barrels of oil a day, equating to over 23 million dollars a day on today’s market. Plain and simple 23 million dollars is worth more to Big Oil than keeping their promise to “implement even more stringent safety requirements than mandated by federal regulations”.

So what exorbitant penalty was BP forced to pay for to teach them a lesson for continually putting workers safety at risk? They were fined $69,000. Plain and simple- 23 million dollars per day is worth more than $69,000. Unless this dynamic changes, unless Congress steps up and holds Big Oil accountable for their transgressions, companies like BP will make their billions as Washington State burns, the Gulf suffers and workers lives are put at risk.

]]>http://blog.nwf.org/2012/02/bp-refuses-to-halt-production-as-refinery-explodes/feed/2The 12 Most Dramatic, Disturbing and Inspiring Wildlife Stories of 2010http://blog.nwf.org/2011/11/the-12-most-dramatic-disturbing-and-inspiring-wildlife-stories-of-2010-2/
http://blog.nwf.org/2011/11/the-12-most-dramatic-disturbing-and-inspiring-wildlife-stories-of-2010-2/#commentsFri, 18 Nov 2011 22:31:20 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/wildlifepromise/?p=10486Read more >]]>There were thousands of wildlife stories in the news over the past year but some stand out as being particularly dramatic, sobering or even inspiring.

The great Gulf turtle rescue: in April we saw the beginning of the BP oil disaster in the Gulf. By the time it was contained, more than 200 million gallons of oil had poured out and coated hundreds of square miles of water. The toll on wildlife of all sizes was profound as evidenced from these National Wildlife Federation maps: http://bit.ly/gv159v Certainly on of the most inspiring events around the Gulf was the relocation of thousands of see turtle hatchings from the sands of Gulf beaches to the sands of the Atlantic. Read more: http://ind.pn/aD82MP

The amazing Census of Marine Life: the Census was released in 2010. It is a collaboration among 80 nations over 10 years. Thousands of new species were discovered and cataloged. Take a look at the gallery of unbelievable and brilliant deep sea life: http://bit.ly/hkyJpj

The sad tale of little brown bats: a devastating bat plague called white nose syndrome still stymies animal researchers as millions of bats have succumbed to a fungal attack that restricts their ability breathe. Bat caves in the East have been closed to visitors and there are signs the plague is moving to the West: http://bit.ly/a5i1T9

Moving tigers from the brink of extinction: In the past few decades the number of wild tigers shrunk from 100,000 animals to some 3,000. A recent international conference hosted in Russia came out with a plan to double their numbers. http://bit.ly/gXOIZ5 Actor Leonardo DiCaprio personally made a $1 million gift to help jump-start the plan’s implementation.

The Loss of a U.S. wildlife hero: In 2010 we saw the untimely death of Sam Hamilton (54) the director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Sam was a respected 30-year professional dedicated to species protection. http://wapo.st/dEpzZ0

Discovery of 1,200 new Amazon species: Our colleagues at the World Wildlife Fund demonstrated to people everywhere how much there is to learn about our natural world when they released their report on the discovery of over one thousands new species in the Amazon over a decade of study: http://bit.ly/cWnBFH

Wolf protection debate in the Northern Rockies: The Department of the Interior and the States of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming have been in extensive discussions in a heated political setting over whether wolves in the northern Rockies merit endangered species protection: http://bit.ly/iangkb

The continuing struggle against illegal wildlife trade: the battle continued in 2010 to cut down on wildlife poaching and trade in endangered animals. There were increases in the number of apprehensions and arrests but, as the smugglers become more devious and the poachers become more aggressive, the overall signs are not good. Wildlife smuggling seems to be on the rise and is an international black market rivaling illegal drug imports. http://bit.ly/hauD9j

Polar Bears Polar stuck on shore: This year polar bears in the arctic region were delayed several weeks from making their winter trip out onto the Arctic Sea ice for their annual seal hunting. Warm weather caused to ice to be late forming and bears were stuck on land emaciated and suffering: http://bit.ly/cCeHhB

Walrus mass exodus to land: a Alaskan exodus of 10,000 to 20,000 walruses to land was an unusual event that also reflects the loss of sea ice in the arctic. This mass exodus was a new one on the Chukchi sea coast and wildlife experts see it as a sign of global climate change: http://bit.ly/aTmljY

Japanese whale hunt in the Antarctic whale sanctuary: as summer begins in the southern hemisphere, Japanese whalers and environmentalists are converging again in Antarctic waters for another stand-off and possible battle over their strong differences concerning the legality of whaling in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary. http://bit.ly/et6pzK

Mountain gorillas making a comeback: Ending on a more promising note, thirty years ago the mountain gorilla population was down to 250. This year 782 were counted between two locations. http://aol.it/h7A1IxDo you want to help conserve wildlife and wild places? NWF has just launched a new online portal called “Choose Your Cause.” Just click on the cause you care about most and enjoy inspiring stories from folks on the ground who are working tirelessly to protect the wildlife and wild places we all love.

]]>http://blog.nwf.org/2011/11/the-12-most-dramatic-disturbing-and-inspiring-wildlife-stories-of-2010-2/feed/0Weekly News Roundup – September 30, 2011http://blog.nwf.org/2011/09/weekly-news-roundup-september-30-2011/
http://blog.nwf.org/2011/09/weekly-news-roundup-september-30-2011/#commentsFri, 30 Sep 2011 21:14:51 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/wildlifepromise/?p=32650Read more >]]>Want to know what National Wildlife Federation was up to this week? Here is a recap of the week’s NWF news:

September 30 – America’s prairies, iconic grasslands that conjure up images of cowboys, Native Americans, wild horses and bison, are some of the most endangered ecosystems in the world. As they disappear, so does an American way of life, a western spirit of freedom, wilderness and connecting with nature.

The National Wildlife Federation and South Dakota State University hosted a landmark event, America’s Grasslands: Status, Threats and Opportunities, in South Dakota to raise the national profile of our declining prairies. Participants came from all over the country, even representatives from South Africa, Mexico and Canada, to discuss the challenges for grasslands in North America.

September 30 – The South Carolina Wildlife Federation recently partnered with the National Wildlife Federation and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to assist in implementing the vision of the Range-wide Conservation Plan for Longleaf Pine ecosystems with the full spectrum of ecological, economic and social values. SCWF and NWF will work with land trusts in the areas surrounding the Francis Marion National Forest (FMNF) and will reach out to African American Leaders and landowners in the low country area to accelerate progress in longleaf pine conservation. SCWF and NWF project will utilize a mix of technical workshops, field days, public agency personnel including NRCS and consulting foresters.

September 26 – A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences documents the effect of BP oil on the Gulf killifish. The minnow-like wetlands resident is a critical part of the Gulf’s food chain and was chosen for study by a team of researchers because of its abundance and sensitivity to any effects of toxic pollution. The study finds that oil exposure has altered the killifish’s cellular function in ways that are known to be predictive of developmental abnormalities, decreased hatching success, and decreased embryo and larval survival.

“This study is alarming because similar health effects seen in fish, sea otters, and harlequin ducks following the Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska were predictive of population impacts, from decline to outright collapse,” said Doug Inkley, senior scientist with the National Wildlife Federation.